Eat right this Winter

Monday

Eating well in the Winter isn’t as hard as it seems. Sure, the produce you could pick right out of the garden is gone. That doesn’t mean you have to throw in the towel on good nutrition.

Eating well in the Winter isn’t as hard as it seems. Sure, the produce you could pick right out of the garden is gone. That doesn’t mean you have to throw in the towel on good nutrition.

Soups/stews

Soups and stews are natural Winter foods. They are filling, warming and soothing for those who experience the Winter doldrums. Plus, they are very easy to make because you don’t really need a recipe. Start with some savory root vegetables (onions, garlic, scallions, etc.) for flavor. Add fresh or frozen vegetables for bulk. Include a liquid (beef, chicken or vegetable stock). Finally, spice it up. Add cumin, epazote and cilantro for a Southwestern flair. Go with thyme, sage and parsley for a more traditional European flavor. Or, make your mix Asian with ginger, turmeric and curry.

Easier still, make a "dump" or "refrigerator" soup. This recipe takes all the guess work out and uses up leftovers quickly. Start with a stock or a large can of tomato juice. Add whatever leftovers you have in the ’frig. Supplement with additional veggies or potatoes as needed. Season to taste and you have a quick, simple meal.

Citrus

Oranges, grapefruit, nectarines and more are readily available in the Winter. Packed with vitamin C and other antioxidants, citrus fruit can provide bulk, keep you hydrated and support your immune system. Explore some of the more exotic members of the citrus family with an excursion to an ethnic market. Try yuzu, a cross between a mandarin and a papeda (a subgenus of citrus) with a flavor somewhere between a lemon and a grapefruit. Or, pick kumquats, another subgenus of citrus. Kumquats are often eaten fresh, with their skin on. They have very sour flesh, but their rinds are sweet.

Winter crops

Winter crops, especially root crops like turnips and parsnips, get a bad rap at the dinner table. These items can be very tasty if they aren’t cooked to a pulp like our grandparents used to do. Instead of stewing them, try dicing and stir-frying these roots as a side dish or as part of a vegetable medley.

The same is true of Winter leaf vegetables. The heavier flavor of kale and collards put some folks off. Others don’t want to indulge in traditional recipes that relied heavily on pork fat to flavor these greens. Try a chiffonade of the leaves in a stir fry or in a soup. Chiffonade is just a fancy way of saying, cut the leaves into long, thin strips. These same leaves, if diced, can be incorporated into meatloaf, spaghetti sauce and chili. Diners will never know the difference as they reap the healthy benefits.

Winter squash

Pumpkins aren’t just for pies and Halloween. The squash family has plenty of tasty opportunities, many of which are packed with good nutrients like alpha-carotene, beta-carotene, lutein, zeaxanthin and beta-cryptoxanthin. Dice acorn squash and add to stews. Slice Hubbard squash like eggplant, spray with cooking oil spray, lightly dust with flour and oven bake until it is fork tender. Then, use as you would eggplant for a new take on eggplant parmesan. Steam butternut squash until tender. Then, toss with olive oil, garlic and rosemary for a fresh side dish.

Don’t forget to stay hydrated this Winter. Winter humidity levels are usually very low. Add to that, home and business heating systems that dry the air even more.

When your body gets thirsty, you get groggy and grumpy. Dry nasal tissues are more susceptible to invasion from wayward cold and flu bugs. Plus, many of us think we are hungry when, in fact, we’re just thirsty. This can lead to overeating — a bad habit to indulge in the Winter when we tend to be more sedentary anyway.